Rules & Approval: part 3
……… continued from yesterday’s post ……..
Is it human nature, or a socially-induced end result, that encourages us to look for external approval to such an extreme degree? Is it some concept of civilization which indicates acceptable decisions and social interactions and which defines these things further with legal consequences for unacceptable actions? Perhaps it’s a matter of physical comfort in our modernized countries and no longer having the minute to minute fight for our lives that has encouraged us to instead seek permission for and social approval of our actions instead of finding creative ways to think, grow and live? Or perhaps nothing has changed at all. The hunter dragging the kill back to the clan was often rewarded with approval, wasn’t he? The difference, I suspect, is that while the hunter was out actually hunting, a myriad of decisions faced him – any one of which may very well get him hurt or end his life. Simple, mindless, regurgitation of ‘fact’ of how to hunt, without any independent or creative thought, under these kinds of circumstances was a dangerous thing.
In modern times, creativity is subjugated and we tend to take life more-or-less for granted. We rarely see each moment of life as a gift and we seem rarely able to live life it to its fullest. Even if we wanted to, there are too many rules, too many modes of approval for our actions to consider. Even what should be praise-worthy actions and thoughts are often surrounded by disapproval; the larger goal was accomplished, but by breaking a few smaller rules. So what are our priorities? What are our goals? Even those individuals in high-ranking positions intended to lead and offer guidance for the masses seem horribly swayed in their decision-making process by their most recent approval ratings. Our spirits have been dominated, enslaved by our own culture. Are we nothing more than cows in a field now, ready to be herded? Are we not supposed to experience anything outside of the standard, acceptable, experiences? Suddenly I feel I’m writing a Sci-Fi novel a la 1984‘s Big Brother or Brave New World.
How can we maintain and develop personal responsibility when it is constantly undermined by nearly every aspect of our society and culture? How easy is it to maintain self-confidence in a world where the individual is portrayed as worthless – unless you have the car of the day, the huge house, the perfect body, and any number of other superficial things being hocked at every possible opportunity…
Must we reject our culture in order to regain ourselves?
It is difficult sometimes, to even recognize that we are adhering to certain cultural “norms” such as this in our daily lives. It can be even more difficult to evaluate whether these norms are applicable to our specific situations. In our culture, we are not often encouraged to think for ourselves and there is much pressure to conform to the standard, acceptable benchmarks of life. The media provides us with what we should be thinking – how many of us actually realize how terribly slanted and biased it has become? What is it about thinking independently that scares humanity so much that the few who seem to manage independent thought are frequently ostracized and in some cases persecuted?
Why do we do this to ourselves? Are we trying to convince ourselves that we are physical entities instead of a spiritual entity with a physical component? We undervalue ourselves, dismiss communications with ourselves and with our Spiritual side (unless it comes with a very specific doctrine to follow), and look to others for validation. Do we not trust ourselves with ourself?
Must our approach to life and living and existing and BEing, be so external? Look within. Find the truth and the courage to change – first yourself, then the world.
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